McDonald’s Overtime Pay Class Action Lawsuit Heads to Trial to Determine Damages

An overtime pay class action lawsuit against McDonald’s is currently on trial to determine the extent of damages the company will owe. The court has already ruled that the fast food giant failed to pay proper overtime wages to certain employees due to its overnight shift policies.

According to the overtime pay class action lawsuit, McDonald’s regular shift assignment practices allowed workers to work a night shift and a daytime shift within a 24-hour period that exceeded eight hours of work, but did not pay those workers for their overtime hours, assigning the overnight shifts to the previous day of pay.

Last month, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ann Jones ruled that this practice meant workers were not getting their overtime hours in this situation.

Yet to be determined are several preliminary issues that will help shape how the rest of the overtime pay class action lawsuit goes forward, including the definition of a 24-hour workday, and whether McDonald’s is liable for statutory penalties under the California Private Attorney General Act.

Representatives for the plaintiffs argued that McDonald’s does owe penalties under the California Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) because it willfully set up this payroll system in order to avoid paying its workers overtime wages. This is not the first overtime pay class action lawsuit over such an issue, one representative argued—McDonald’s should have been aware of the illegality of such a practice.

This overtime pay class action lawsuit was filed in January 2013 over wage and hour violations, including failure to provide overtime and meal breaks, requiring employees to perform certain unpaid work like washing uniforms off the clock, and even adjusting time records.

The overtime pay class action lawsuit includes a Class of around 6,600 workers under the overnight shift overtime claim.

Wage and Hour Protections

There are a series of both federal and state wage and hour laws put in place to protect workers and ensure they are treated fairly at and by their workplace. Many workers across the country are unaware of the protections that federal and state wage and hour laws offer. This can lead to employers taking advantage of them, in some cases requiring unpaid overtime work despite the illegality of doing so.

Some workers may find themselves unable to file wage and hour complaints like this unpaid overtime lawsuit because they are not aware of these rules. Other workers may be afraid that their employers will retaliate or even fire them if they speak up about these kinds of violations.

However, to protect workers who help to enforce wage and hour rules, laws also exist to protect workers from discrimination based on wage and hour complaints.

Filing an Unpaid Overtime Lawsuit

If you have worked for an employer like McDonald’s that may have failed to follow federal or state wage and hour laws, such as unpaid overtime requirements, you may be able to either join a wage and hour class action lawsuit or file a suit of your own.

Join a Free California Wage & Hour Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were forced to work off the clock or without overtime pay within the past 3 years in California, you have rights – and you don’t have to take on the company alone.

Get a Free Case Evaluation Now